Meredith Mcgehee

Meredith Mcgehee News

InsideClimateNews.org — Between February 2010 and July 2011, Lisa and Bob Parr filed 13 complaints about air pollution from gas and oil operations near their ranch in Wise County, Texas. Sometimes they had trouble breathing, they told the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). They also experienced nausea, nosebleeds, ringing ears and rashes.

Even as New Jersey Governor Chris Christie faces an audit of his federally funded tourism advertisements, an influx of campaign money makes commercials paid for by taxpayers or corporate sponsors increasingly attractive to cash-strapped politicians.

Louisiana energy executive William Doré wrote a $1 million check last month to help Rick Santorum win the U.S. Republican presidential election -- a contribution that came out of the blue, according to the former Pennsylvania senator’s other major donor.

As spending by outside groups financed by anonymous donors has escalated in election campaigns, some Republican lawmakers are rethinking opposition to legislation requiring organizations that run political advertisements to identify who’s paying for them.

The American Petroleum Institute, the largest oil and gas industry trade group, will start backing political candidates this year as the U.S. considers repealing $46 billion in subsidies and imposing pollution rules.